Marvel’s Kevin Feige breaks his silence over Martin Scorsese criticism, saying: ‘That’s not true’
- Marvel boss had stayed silent until now, but defended his creations – past and future – saying: ‘Everybody has a different definition of cinema’
- Avengers stars Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson also weigh in on controversy that followed director’s comment that Marvel films aren’t human cinema
Amid mounting chatter surrounding Martin Scorsese’s criticism of Marvel films that has baited the likes of Disney CEO Bob Iger and Iron Man himself, Robert Downey Jnr, one major player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has kept quiet – until now.
After more than a month of silence, Kevin Feige, Marvel’s chief creative officer, has finally addressed Scorsese’s statement that the MCU “isn’t the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being”.
In a recent podcast from the Hollywood Reporter, Feige defended his creations – past and future – against the Irishman filmmaker’s assertion that Marvel films are a disgrace to the medium.
“I think that’s not true,” he said. “It’s unfortunate. I think myself and everyone who works on these movies loves cinema, loves movies, loves going to the movies, loves to watch a communal experience in a movie theatre full of people, and we’ve been very lucky that our movie theatres are often full of people when our movies play. I love all types of movies and always have, which is why we try to blend our films with different genres and take the success that we’ve had and do different things.”
His defence echoes reactions from fellow MCU architects, such as Iger, who last week vowed to “debate” Scorsese on the topic of cinema, right before Scorsese doubled down on his own comments in a widely circulated op-ed for The New York Times. His latest critique lamented the lack of risk taken in Marvel franchises he sees as void of “revelation, mystery or genuine emotional danger”.